Edward Link is a simple family man at home until a beloved friend, dying in South Africa, calls him to her bedside for one last favor. As a screen actor it will mean playing all his most dangerous movie roles in real life and may mean his own demise. An excellent thriller.
This was a moderately good read. It's a very early work for Francis and the story isn't as well written as his later books but still worth reading.
Edward Lincoln is the cool, self-effacing Englishman that makes the perfect hero. A little insight into an actor's psyche, but mostly a quessing game till almost the end as to who is the evil culprit. A good early Dick Francis novel
Dick Francis novels seem to follow a pattern, but then interesting ideas and the new main characters from novel to novel keep me coming back for more suspense; villains seem to be everywhere in the world! I can't read these books at night or else I end up spending the entire night reading. I never fall asleep reading a Dick Francis novel. The recently republished versions bring some new introductions to the life experiences that the author brings and the locations of the stories. This novel primarily takes place in South Africa, which is interesting not only for the unusual location but also for the descriptions of the landscape and plants and animals of this part of the world. Along with a riveting story, you get a good travel trip from the book. My favorite of the many stories from this author, and certainly there isn't a boring minute of reading..
Famous actor Edward Lincoln goes to South Africa on request from his dying friend, whose racehorses are mysteriously losing race after race. Lincoln is one of the calm, stoic, courageous but slightly self-effacing characters that Francis specialized in. That might be why I didn't really believe in him...how many famous actors try hard to fade into the background? There's a bit of wincing when one of the other characters defends apartheid, but Francis doesn't have his character agree with it at least. Otherwise, an interesting trip out of England and a nice mystery.
